Finally...

Father's Day

Growing up I was pretty sure I would never find a man that was as good of a dad as my dad was. In my eyes he was pretty much perfect, so any man I married had a lot to live up to! Thankfully, the Lord blessed me with an amazing Dad AND an amazing dad for my kiddos.

I have to admit, Chris blows me away at what an amazing father he is on almost a daily basis. When he comes home from work he is completely present. He engages the kids, plays with them, loves them, enjoys being around them, teaches them, and strives to continually to understand them so he can pray for them better. Going back through the last four and a half years of pictures, it was so fun to see all the memories the kids already have made with Chris. From playing together, having dance parties, taking naps together, swimming, boat rides, making chores seem like fun (ie: wearing a 30 pound toddler while mowing), having "guy's time" at Krispy Kreme, singing to his daughter, wiping tears, introducing Star Wars...I could go on... Basically, I want to thank Chris for being such an incredible dad to our kids! You are a true blessing to our family, and you're showing your kids a reflection of our heavenly Father's love. You rock. :)

Cousins

Two weekends ago, Harper and I made a trip to Oklahoma to meet our newest niece/cousin, Mica Joy! It was kind of like a vacation for me with just one kid that didn't talk...the car ride there and back was SO quiet. It was so fun seeing Josh and Caylee and meeting Micah. Her and Harper could not look any less related at this point in their lives. Micah is long and lean with bright blue eyes and fair skin. Sweet Harper looked like a dark little butterball next to her cousin! They both managed to punch each other in the face in their first meeting, but I am sure they will become best of buds soon!
While Harper and I were gone, Chris and the boys had a "guy's weekend". It was full of tents, watching Star Wars and eating at Steak & Shake. This is the picture Chris sent me from his phone. I couldn't help but laugh...

3 Months & Strange Happenings

My baby girl has been with us for three months now! I feel like every morning when I get her she's grown and changed since the night before. She's smiling all the time now, and she's even "talking" to us in sweet little "cooing" sounds. She's continued her "best sleeping baby" streak as she is now sleeping 11-12 hours every night. I still can't believe it. She's taking about three naps a day and goes down really easy. Thank you, Lord, for such an easy baby... She's becoming more aware of her hands and she's constantly trying to get them in her mouth. She's also started trying to grab the toys on her car seat. Having a girl is doing really weird things to me. I actually pulled out my sewing machine and sewed some baby leggings a few weeks ago. My friends, Shawn and Leslie, inspired me - thanks, guys! And then I started making hair flowers/clips. I admit, I am addicted... The ironic thing is that I hardly ever put them on Harper b/c they constantly end up in her eyes, but thankfully I have lots of friends with girls that I have been able to share them with! I've been eyeing a dress that is on Etsy that I think I may attempt to sew when I get my machine back from getting fixed. I'm not sure what's going on with me!!!

In motion

I don't know why I like this picture, but I do. I love this little face.

It's the simple things...

My Shadow...

From an early age, Owen has not enjoyed being by himself. As a baby he wanted to be carried all the time, and as a 2 year old, he is always at my side wanting to help out. It's taken me a little bit to get used to this as Ethan has always been content playing by himself. I've had to get creative in finding ways for Owen to "help" and still get things done. He decided since I was on my computer one morning that he should have a computer himself. This was his creation... The whole time he was working, he was talking about selling gum and candy (his dad's job as far as he knows).
Owen sticking to my side doesn't just limit itself to the house either. He generally stays busy in my general vicinity mowing or weed eating when we're at the park, in the front yard, etc. His buddy Elli is very similar with her mom, but I think they may have turned a new leaf as they both decided that playing together might not be a bad idea! This was very exciting for us moms. It was pretty cute watching them hold hands playing in the water. They were a smaller version of Ethan and Elli's big sister, Gracie. (Ethan's already claimed undying love for Gracie.) Maybe we should arrange a double wedding...

Road Trippin' to see the Granparents

Harper took her first trip down to Mulberry last week. It was very impromptu, but Chris was out of town, and we had the third round of bad tornadoes coming through. (Chris has impeccable timing being gone during bad weather...he's missed the last three major blizzards in the last two years!) I generally do not get too nervous about tornadoes after growing up in "tornado alley", but after seeing Joplin AND having three kids of my own, it's a little more sobering. So, we decided to head south and spend the night with Paw Paw and his partially underground house. It was quite the adventure as he was in the middle of having most of his floors redone, but we made due and made some memories in the process! Chris' brother's family spent the night there too, so we were on mattresses in halls, bathrooms and the laundry room. I didn't sleep much, but we were safe. AND the boys got to take 4-wheeler rides the next day with Paw Paw to see all the animals, so in their mind it was the perfect trip.
Last weekend was Chris and I's 7 year anniversary, so we made a quick trip to Stillwater so my parents could watch the kids while we celebrated. We were able to eat an amazing dinner just the two of us and carry on an entire conversations without being interrupted! So nice! We then got Harper who stayed at the hotel with us since she's still not a fan of the bottle, but she was a gem and slept till 7 that next morning. (it's funny how perspective changes...now it's a vacation having just one kid and "sleeping in" till 7!) The three of us had a big buffet breakfast, I was able to take a jog around my alma mater's campus, and I even went back to bed just because I could! I think Harper enjoyed the day too b/c she was the center of attention and didn't get mauled once! It really was a relaxing 17 hours. Thanks, mom and dad, for taking care of the boys and letting us do that!